Christ is in our midst!

 

The importance of vigil.

 

The primary reason for serving in English is to understand the services. Why is this important? Because the services grant us peace and are full of grace, teach divine truth, fill the mind with light and alight the heart with divine love for God, the Theotokos and the Saints.

 

While this is true for the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, I am not referring to the Divine Liturgy here. Once one becomes familiar with the Divine Liturgy one can benefit whether it is in English or not, as variable parts of the Divine Liturgy are limited. What is important is that the Epistle and Gospel readings and sermon are understandable.

 

Let us recall what is repeated in Genesis: And the evening and the morning were the first, second, third… day. Thus the day begins in the evening. Our liturgical services begin with Vespers.

 

What remains of liturgical worship in what was once Western Christianity has been, for the most part, reduced to a eucharistic service. The evening and morning services are not frequently served. The non-liturgical communities of these latter days know of no such services at all. They have not idea how impoverished they are.

 

Sadly, we are imitating them, despite the richness and fullness of the services. Whether it is because of the circumstances of modern life, such as our distance from the church, we must no allow this to be so.

 

As this world distances itself from God and embraces evil, we will, necessarily, become distinct. This is the natural consequence of being Orthodox in this world in which we live. It takes courage, faith, commitment.

 

One of the ways in which we are different - besides fasting, which, in a world in which veganism is growing in popularity, is not the distinction as it was a generation ago - is our sense of liturgical time.

 

This sense can be a bit of a challenge as we do not live in a town with a church nearby, in which we can hear the church bells ringing in the morning and in the evening calling us to prayer. So we must make it a point to be aware of the Lord’s Day (Sunday) and the feasts celebrated throughout the year.

 

The liturgical day begins in the evening. Thus our Sunday services begin on Saturday evening. The practice of the Slavic churches is to serve Vigil, which combines Vespers and Matins. It is a longer service - it is a vigil after all! Yet not nearly as long as it would be in a monastery (although there really should be no distinction). The real problem is how we thing about time. We don’t think about Saturday evening - or the eve of any Divine Liturgy - as a time to go to church to prepare for the Liturgy. But this is exactly what we must accustom ourselves to do. 

 

Liturgical time is important. We attend Vigil to prepare for the Divine Liturgy, particularly if we desire to partake of the Holy Mysteries.

 

One reason why many do not attend vigil is that it a long service, with many changeable parts, which they may not understand. This is no longer true.

 

The Vigil is so beautiful, profound, enriching, enlightening. It is full of praise and repentance, magnification, edification. It is a necessary component of the Orthodox Christian life if one truly wants to learn about and live one’s faith. The services in general, and vigil in particular, teach us dogma, the lives of the saints, the meaning of Holy Days - just come to vigil on Nativity Eve and see! Each week, each season, we enter into deeper into the mysteries of God according to the level of our spiritual maturity. 

 

And once we become accustomed to listening to and praying the service because we understand it, my, how time flies.

 

Back in 1985 I was part of an octet visiting churches from coast to coast. The most memorable impression I have is when we were taken to a parish church in New Jersey where they were serving vigil. The church was full. It could hardly have been fuller for Liturgy. Men, women, children, a young mother, swaying with a baby on her shoulder while singing in the choir. It was beautiful. 

 

What is the best way to pray during vigil? Standing with our eyes closed so that we may attentively listen to what is read and chanted. If you grow weary it is acceptable to sit, again with eyes closed, and listen with attention.

 

Once, while still a student, I attended vigil even though I had a moderate fever. I stood in the back right of the church and before I knew it the great doxology was being chanted. I had fallen asleep, standing there, motionless. My fever was gone.

 

Let us learn to think of time differently, liturgically. It will take effort. Adjustments will have to be made, which may not be easy for many. But it is something which we must do to grow in the faith.